Late Spring

Hello, Dear Friends! 

 The buttercups are blooming here in the foothills, bringing the sunshine 

down to earth even on a cloudy day. 

xx

I've been so busy the last few weeks. 

A flurry of visiting, birthdays, holidays, dinners, a retirement party, 

and even a school awards ceremony and a little league game. 

Throw in lots of gardening, spring cleaning, and now, deck painting. 

(The Mr. is doing that, but I am the support team and moving partner.)

Still so much going on, but I'm taking a much-needed break and 

thought I would catch up with all of you. 

I hope that you are finding some delight in this season of renewal

and finding opportunities to 'stop and smell the roses'.  

The weather has been a bit unsettled lately, with cool temperatures, rain and even 

some hail. This is after two glorious weeks of sunshine that had me 

outdoors every chance I could get. 

And before that, we had a surprise snowfall in mid-April! 

The umbrella survived but was open before the snowfall. 

We were having beautiful weather, so this was a surprise. 

The heavy, wet snow brought down a 30 ft. cherry tree just ready to bloom. 

Luckily, it landed on the 

sturdy dog pen we have at the foot of the deck, which 

held it up and prevented damage to the gardens and fence below. 

It took The Mr. 3 days to cut it up and haul it away. 

Cherry tree before. 

And after. Just a big heap.

You can see the remnants of the snow.  

This was on the third day, making the final cuts. 

The tree was so beautiful, and the birds just loved 

the wild cherries in the fall.

I planted it as a tiny, rooted cutting, many years ago. 

 

I also lost a mature lilac tree in full bloom 

in front of the toolshed, which was a gift from my son.

I've found that gardening, like life, is always a work in progress, 

with successes, but also disappointments, failures and 'tragedies'.

That is the frustrating part - planting and taking care of something

for years and then witnessing the unhappy endings.

Although, when one window closes, another one opens, 

or as known in the gardening world - 'letting in more light'. 

I am already making plans for my new light-filled spaces 

that will be a memorial to what was. 

xx

My tulips and flowers cheered me up! 

The potted lavender and kalanchoe were Easter gifts.

All of these lovely flowers were gifts from my adult children for Easter. 

xx

Dealing with those crazy teenage years

has its dividends :)

xx

Daughter Jennie, husband Steve and grandson Jack flew 

out from Hawaii for a two-week, whirlwind visit with 

friends and family, recently. 

We celebrated Jennie's birthday while she was 

here, at daughter Heather's. A small, family affair. 

Steve celebrated his official retirement from the fire department, also,

 with a belated party at a local brewery with 

co-workers, friends and family. 

It was so nice to see them and hug them and watch all of my 

grandchildren playing together.

xx

I baked her a birthday cake and carried it over in this 

sweet, retro style cake pan. 

It was a gift from her a few years ago, 

and I realized my bundt cake 

fits perfectly inside! 

The lid stays firmly on with a rubber gasket, 

making it perfect for travel.   

So pretty with sparkly sprinkles. 

I just used a boxed Spice Cake mix

along with store bought Cream Cheese Frosting. 

I melted the frosting in the microwave for about 30 seconds

(Stirring well afterwards)

and drizzled it on top while the cake was still warm. 

Easy! 

  

This pretty lane is on the way to my daughter's house. 

xx

More pretty trees on the way to my son's house. 

It's so beautiful this time of year with all the flowering trees. 

It really lifts the spirits and brings back sweet memories

of lovely spring days.

I remember the pink flowering Hawthorne tree 

in the front yard of my childhood home.

  My Dad rescued it from the nursery that his Dad 

worked at during the Great Depression. 

It was going out of business, 

and the nursery offered mature shrubs and small trees

for very little, if you could dig them yourself. 

We (Dad and my 12 year old self) spent a whole month of weekends, 

digging and transplanting, and in the end, 

we had a lovely new landscape of beautiful flowering 

trees and shrubs. 

The Hawthorne tree was the lovely centerpiece of the front lawn, 

 planted in front of the 'big rock', amongst the 

daffodils and tulips that my mother loved. 

Every spring it was so pretty, with its

 fern-like leaves and bright 

pink flowers.

xx

Do you have a special tree that you remember in springtime?

I believe these amazing trees are Chestnut. 

There are very few of these around here anymore. 

It's on the grounds of an elementary school in a tiny, old town. 

Large Rhododendrons beside an old, broken fence. 

Ancient lilac along a hillside. 

I have no idea what this aging beauty is. 

The flowers are pale lilac. 

It resides at the edge of an old small-town park. 

Mt. Rainier shimmering over golden fields. 

Sadly, these views are disappearing. 

Development is taking over this once peaceful plateau. 

The land that once supported farming is now 

being sold off to the highest bidder. 

It is very difficult to witness. 

Many things right now are difficult to witness. 

I am trying to stay as grounded 

and focused on positive activities as I can so as 

not to contribute to all of the negativity. 

I ordered some new patterns recently, and am 

waiting for some free time to do a little sewing. 

I've needed a sturdy little dress or skirt with pockets to wear 

around the house when it starts to get hot.

And it's always nice to be able to whip up something pretty if 

an occasion calls for something 'special', too.

Remember the hand-painted card that my blogging friend, 

Carrie sent with her blog giveaway? 

It was so pretty that I framed it. 

Jennie gave me the frame, and it was perfect with 

all the little things I keep on my sewing room table. 

xx

I've been working on my embroidered 'Flower Pot' tablecloth in the 

evenings while relaxing in front of the television. 

I have three pots finished, with one more to go.

Then I have to sew on a backing and crochet a pretty edge. 

It will be sweet as a topper over a gingham or flowered cloth 

on my kitchen table. 

I cleaned out my greenhouse of all the over-wintered herbs 

 and now have flats of flowers 

that I need to pot up. 

These begonias that overwintered need a bit more warmth 

before I set them out. 

They will live in one of my window boxes. 

I had two fuchsia that survived the winter, too. 

I lost a few plants, but I am learning what I can over-winter

and what I can't. 

Come along and I will show you some of my garden flowers. 

Columbine.

They reseed themselves and every year the flowers are different! 

Allium that I planted last fall. 

Bugleweed. 

These send out runners and are easy to transplant. 

Spanish bluebells. 

I have a growing colony in my 'woodland' garden. 

You can see them through the fence. It's shady here. 

This area is a work in progress. 

I have ferns, the bluebells and 

I just planted variegated vinca in the barrel. 

There's a birdbath to the right out of the frame. 

Variegated Vinca. 

These form pretty colonies. 

Bleeding Heart along the hydrangea hedge, among the ivy.

Common Vinca grows here, too. 

Forget me Not blooming beyond the gate. 

All of these flowers are deer-resistant. 

Yes, we are talking about you! 

xx

 

I have been doing my research on what I can and cannot plant. 

I love having the wildlife, but don't want to waste time 

and energy growing something that will be 'dinner'. 

I captured the full moon one night just as it was 

rising over the mountains. 

Mt. Rainier at sunset. 

xx

It stays light until after 9 P.M. now. 

All the trees have leafed out and the grasses are getting tall. 

My roses have started to bloom. 

Soon we will be having morning coffee and lazy lunches out on the deck,

or working picnics down in the garden. 

It's the season of fresh salads, strawberry shortcake and fruit crisps. 

We'll be stargazing on balmy evenings

while candles flicker amidst lazy conversation. 

The kind that meander through the lovely paths of memory, 

woven with the twining vines of self-reflection and insight,

and blooming with the sweet intentions of future plans. 

xxxx

"Someone once asked me what I regarded as the three most important

requirements for happiness. My answer was: "A feeling that you 

have been honest with yourself and those around you; a feeling that

you have done the best you could both in your personal life 

and in your work; and the ability to love others."

- Eleanor Roosevelt -

xx

"Believe there is a great power silently working all things for good, 

behave yourself and never mind the rest."

   

- Beatrix Potter -

xx

"Human kindness has never weakened the stamina or softened

the fiber of a free people. A nation does not have to be 

cruel to be tough." 

- Franklin D. Roosevelt -

 

 

 

 

 

Hello Spring!

Hello, Dear Friends, I hope that you are feeling a renewed sense of 

hope and happiness that at least, it is finally, officially spring. 

Although...spring can be fickle, I know, and takes its own sweet time. 

Much like me, these days! 

For every beautiful, sunny day, there are equally cold and rainy ones, 

but that just gives me an excuse to get some housework done, 

and catch up with all of you!

 My local grocery store has a full garden center, 

(I know, how lucky am I?),

and I've been collecting a few pansies 

every time I go, to pot up for my deck. 

I just love those sweet little faces.

Don't you just love crocus, too?

 I keep them in tubs because rodents

eat the bulbs if I plant them in the ground. 

Out-witting mother nature is sometimes a challenge! 

And, of course, there's daffodils! 

These are at the entry gate. 

I planted these years ago, 

and they are still making me smile. 

The device on top of the post is a solar panel for the 

automatic gate. 

I just hit the remote and it opens for me! 

 I don't have to get out of the vehicle and manually open it 

anymore. That was a nightmare late at night. 

(Theme song for 'The Twilight Zone', here :)

We have regular cougar and bear sightings. 

I would get such anxiety when I had to come home after dark! 

Little drops of sunshine. 

I planted these miniature daffodils last fall. 

Every year I try to plant a few more. 

The best part is that the deer and rodents won't touch them! 

xx

I planted deer-resistant wildflower seeds in the fenced in area behind them and you can 

see some are already coming up. 

Of course, I am never alone! 

This is not a garden hose...

This healthy-looking guy was sunning himself at the back 

of the garden and didn't seem the least bit 

afraid of me. 

Luckily, I noticed him, and quickly finished up so as not 

to disturb him. 

He's a simple garden snake who likes to eat slugs, so he can stay. 

After that, I decided I needed to go inside and soothe my nerves 

with a cup of tea! 

I've added a few Easter decorations here and there. 

(You can see Ramblin' Man's honey-do list on the table :)

Just a few of my favorite things.

xx 

Everyone needs some gingham eggs, don't you think?

Beatrix Potter. 

Some of her stories were a little macabre! 

But the illustrations are so charming. 

I decided to add a little bit of pink to all the green, 

so, I crocheted another tiny garland. 

I kept the wreath and straw bag from St. Patrick's Day but added the sweet sheep picture.

It's a little bit crooked, I see :) 

Of course, it wouldn't be Easter without a few bunnies :)

Another woolly sheep and chickee dishes. 

I found these at Hobby Lobby last year at an after-Easter sale.

More chicks and my favorite bunny. 

Isn't he so dear?

I made him a little Easter basket. 

It's a biodegradable plant pot wrapped in burlap ribbon

with a crocheted flower. 

The Mr. added a wire handle. 

xx

I'm hosting Easter dinner this year. 

xx

We had lovely wild plum display until a storm that brought

 high winds, rain and blizzard conditions

in the mountains.

We lost power at the height of the storm and were 

sitting in front of the fire, reading with our head lamps

when all of a sudden, we heard a huge 'boom - boom, boom!' that shook the house. 

It was dark and we couldn't see clearly, but we 

could tell that a tree had fallen on the roof over the library. 

We took flashlights and went out into the driving rain and wind

and took a look around and it looked bad. 

Then the roof started leaking. 

This is what we woke up to. 

We've had a dead hemlock that has been coming down in pieces 

every time there's a storm. 

This is the second time a piece has hit the roof. 

I truly believe in angels or the hand of God, 

because, considering all of the things that could've happened, 

we've been extremely lucky. 

Most of the tree hit the ground, but this one section hit the roof, missed the woodstove chimney, 

rolled off, hit my little glass bistro table and landed on the unscathed deck! 

The only casualties on the deck were the table and a couple of my inexpensive pots.

The bistro chairs survived with one of them folding onto the floor of the deck. 

My beautiful, blue glazed pots came away unscathed.  

The only structural damage - three broken branch stubs embedded in the roof.

The leaks ran down to the top of the glass doors and dripped from there, 

so, the wood ceiling was undamaged. 

It rained hard for another day and finally cleared enough for 

the Mr. to get up and patch things until he could 

hire someone to fix the damage.  

That stopped the leakage. 

When my son, Dustin heard what happened, he convinced his Dad 

that they could fix the roof themselves. 

We had some leftover shingles and Dustin had some plywood, 

so, all they needed was some of the waterproof paper to go underneath. 

It took two days of steady work.

 

I was in charge of keeping them fueled :)

Egg salad sandwiches for lunch, oatmeal spice cake, 

and Chicken pot pie with plenty of hot coffee. 

Up on the roof completing the job! 

Two of our grandsons stopped by to take a look 

with their Dad.

 (You can see him behind the Mr. with the yellow hat brim)

He brought a dehumidifier to dry out the leak. 

Look at how tall the grandsons are getting!  

The finished project. 

You would never know...

Thank you to my wonderful, hard-working, very tired guys! 

So grateful for you! 

xoxo 

I saw this beautiful rainbow on my way home from the grocery store

the other day.

The signs are from our local veterinary clinic.  

The sun is now setting past our little mountain and giving us this 

gorgeous light show in the evening.

It looks like there is a road passing through, but it is actually 

high tension power lines. 

I've watched as helicopters drop lineman in baskets to 

inspect the lines. 

There are no roads out there, except for logging roads that are gated.  

The last of the light. 

Can you see the jet illuminated by the sun?

It's headed south-west. 

Someplace warm, I'm guessing. 

It's 35 degrees here. 

And it's hailing! 

Hey - wait for me!! 

xx

I hope that you have a lovely Easter Sunday, dear friends. 

And Happy Spring!

xoxo

"It is Spring again. The earth is like a child that knows poems by heart."

- Rainer Maria Rilke -

"That is one good thing about this world...

There are always sure to be more Springs."

- L.M. Montgomery -

'Anne of Avonlea'

"In the Spring, I have counted 136 different kinds of weather

inside of 24 hours."

- Mark Twain -